The Democratic press. [volume] (Ravenna, O. [Ohio]) 1868-1901, 1887-02-24
TARIFF REFORM,
CONTINUED

CONTINUED.
FRIEND HARRIs:-In my commu.
nication in your issue of Jan. 18th
last, said that the idea of protection
involved the elements and principles
of slavery" L will now give few
thoughts explaining that declaration.
One of the highest rights of man, in
all civilized governments of the earth,
is the right to acquire, possess and dis
pose of property, the product of his
toll, genius or skill; the right to sell or
freely exchange it, where and when
he pleases, for other property. Now
let US see: Suppose we enact and en-
force laws prohibiting such exchanges
then each individual would be re
stricted to the use and enjoyment Of
his own productions. and would be but
little better off than was Robinson
Crusoe on the lonely isle Such laws
fully enforced would produce the most
unjustifiable slavery. Rights of free
dom not only abridged but enslaved to
the law. And in 80 far as a protective
law is enacted and enforced, further
than is necessary for public purposes,
it partakes of the elements of such alb
solute prohibition, and is unjust, un-
constitutional and enslaving. They
obstrnct the channels and rights of
commercial intercourse and check the
progress of civilization. This idea of
protective tariff, is a part of the same
scheme, amounts to the same thing,
for where you make the Interchange
of commodities costly and difficult by
law, the effect, the trouble aud costs,
are the same a. though you interposed
swamps, bad roads, uDbridged streams
and bands of robbers between pro.
ducers and consumers, and it results
in q diminutiOn of the abundance Of
the things which contribute to every.
body's necessities, comfort aud happi
ness. A fifty per cent. duty for u. TO
pay on what we need, is Ikea bad and
miFey road. is like deep and rapid
river with no facilities to cross, lying
between producer and consumer; a
seventy five per cent. duty on what
We need is like a miry, dismal, un-
broken, ,undrained and roadless swamp
lying between producer and consume,
and makes the interchange of COM
modities SO costly rs to greatly depre
ciate the value of the commodity, TO
the injury of the producer. In fact,
it is like the robber, who would strip
the producer of the value of his pro
ductions, and rob the consumer of his
meaus wherewith to buy his daily
bread. Hence, we see, that the prac-
tical working of the system of pro
tective tariff is like the system of hu-
man slavery. in this, they each deprive
the individual of q portion of the fruit
of his labor without making to him in
return any direct compensation. And
for what? Simply TO please aud en-
rich the millionaire monopolist. Oh
says the protectionist, the injury re-
sulting to the masses of the people
from this restriction will be more than
compensated to them, indirectly, by
the prosperity of our gleat factories in
our State. Well, for one, am unable
to see it in that light. The advocates
of American slavery declared that the
system was really for the good of the
slaves, and that any deprivation of
liberty by them endured was more
than compensated by the good their
servitude done for society. Away with
such contemplate bosh Never try
to feed it to the minds of an intelli-
gent and free people. By its workings
we are robbed, by its reducing the
value of our productions robbed to
enrich men and monopolies who al
ready have more than they can enjoy
robbed to pile up the money of our
country in the Treasury vaults, and
in the favorite banks of great CONNER
cial centers, to be at the mercy of uI-
scrupulous evil designing men, who
with their millions buy their way into
the halls of legislation, they may more
securely rivit these shackles of legal
robbery around the necks of the mill
lions Of the people, their wives and
children, to centralize wealth and to
build up an aristocracy. Few, very
few, have an idea of the vast sums
taken from the hard earnings of our
people by this pernicious, hateful pro-
tective system, for the last few years
L will try and give some idea of the
magnitude of the matter in my next
s. D. N.
81